Once a week I go to Nine Mile Farm to cook and to learn from Rebekah Rice, the farmer. What do you do with the sprouted onions and potatoes and the old tired squashes? You eat them! This week, Amy Ellis, Rebekah Rice and I came together to show how we celebrate food in our kitchens, by using all of the produce! The day started with a tour by Rebekah Rice of her biodynamic organic vegetable farm. Visitors pulled veggies from the root cellar and green house then went to Honest Weight Food Co-op and joined me for a Farm-to Table cooking class.

It was a super fun class! A class on my favorite topics: Local Food, Food Waste and Nose-to-tail and Root-to-Stalk cooking.  Cooking seasonally in Upstate New York is embracing the leftover winter produce while welcoming and Spring early greens and herbs.

Thank you everyone who came. Can’t wait to cook with you soon.

Jack Bostic Curried Squash Soup

1 large onion, chopped

3 tablespoons oil

2 pounds of Jack Bostic Squash, peeled and cubed (save seeds)

About a cup of garlic bulbils to make the broth with 4 cups water

1 apple, peeled and cored

1 fresh or frozen lemongrass stalk, root end trimmed

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 tablespoon ginger, minced

1 red chile, seeded and chopped

2 teaspoons ground turmeric

2 teaspoons ground cumin

1 teaspoon smoked paprika

Hot peppers, chopped, to taste

2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar

½ cup chopped cilantro

½ cup chopped parsley

½ cup chopped green onions

Salt and pepper to taste

Sauté onions in oil for about 5 minutes on medium-low heat. Stir in vegetables and cook for about 5 minutes. Add water to cover the vegetables. Add all spices, lemongrass and hot pepper. Simmer for 20–30 minutes. Add vinegar, cilantro, parsley and green onions. Adjust salt to taste, let soup heat through. Remove lemongrass and blend the soup. Serve with a drizzle of sorrel sauce.

Sorrel Sauce (Sauce à l’oseille)

• 1 bunch of sorrel (coarse stems removed, leaves roughly shredded)
• 1 cup crème fraîche
• 2 shallots
• 1 tbsp butter
• salt pepper to taste

Peel the shallots and chop them finely.

Wash and chop sorrel.

Melt the butter in a saucepan. Add the shallots and cook for 2 to 3 min.

Add the sorrel in the pan. Cook until soft on low heat.

Add the crème fraîche, salt, pepper and let it heat over low heat 2 to 3 minutes more.

Blender and serve immediately.

Because of its higher fat content, we can also heat crème fraîche to higher temperatures without fear of it curdling. This makes it a great choice for sauces and soups.

Crème Fraîche recipe

1 cup heavy or ‘whipping’ cream

3 tablespoons plain yogurt

In a jar, combine the cream and yogurt. Cover with a lid let sit in the counter until thickened, 24-36 hours. Stir and refrigerate until ready to use. (Can be refrigerated for up to 1 week.)

“Red Velvet Brownies” (Beet Brownies)

2-3 medium size cooked or roasted beets, pureed, to equal 1 cup

½ cup unsalted butter (1 stick) or coconut oil

3/4 – 1 cup maple syrup

1 tsp. vanilla extract

2 large eggs, whisked

½ cup  White Whole Wheat Flour (or Gluten Free 1:1 Flour or Buckwheat flour)

1/3 cup Unsweetened Cocoa Powder or unsweetened baking chocolate bars or dairy free chocolate chips

1/4 cup chocolate chips

1/4 cup cocoa nibs

Preheat oven to 350F

In a cast iron pan:

Melt butter and chocolate. Stir in cocoa powder, Stir in sugar. Turn off heat.

Add eggs, vanilla.

Whisk dry ingredients: flour

Fold in pureed beets. Add chocolate chips. Bake 30 minutes or until toothpick in center comes out clean.  Cool completely before cutting.

Or  Pour into prepared 8×8 pan and bake as above.

Root Veggie Pancakes made by Rebekah Rice:

 Potatoes (includes some dark blue Magic Mollies), turnips, parsnips, sprouting onions, red onions, eggs

Delicious salad made by Amy Ellis:

Lettuce, sorrel, lambs quarters, purslane, chick weed and dill, fresh turnips (tops and bottoms), edible flowers